Exhaust fire screen



April 7, 1925. 1,532,473

C. F. S. BYRNE EXHAUST FIRE" SCREEN Filed July 12 1920 5mm: nto;

Patented Apr. 7, 1925.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES F. S. BYRNE, OF JANESVILLE, WISCONSIN, ASSIGNO'R TO GENERAL MOTORS CORPORATION, OF DETROIT, MICHIGAN,'A CORPORATION OF DELAWARE.

EXHAUST FIRE SCREEN.

Application filed July 12, 1920. Serial No. 395.790.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES F. S. BYRNE,

a subject of the King of Great Britain, and

a resident of J anesville, county of Rock and State of lVisconsin, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Exhaust Fire Screens, of which the following is a full, clear, concise, and exact description,

such as will enable others skilled in the art to which the invention relates to make and use the same, reference being made therein to the accompanying drawings, which form a part of this specification.

The invention relates to fire screens or guards for internal combustion engines and more particularly to a safety attachment for engines of this type employed in connection with farm tractors or like vehicles. Motor vehicles, and particularly tractors, are often operated in places where there is serious danger of fire resulting from contact of the engine exhaust with inflammable materials such as hay, stubble, standing grain, etc. In some cases also it is desirable to use the tractor in or near buildings, such as barns, or in proximity to straw stacks or the like, or in situations where dust may be present in sufficient quantity to form an inflammable or explosive mixture with the atmosphere. Under such circumstances it is highly desirable that some means should be employed to insure prevention of ignition of combustible materials by reason of the discharge of flame or heated particles of 35 carbon or the like from the engine exhaust ports. I v

The primary object of my invention is to provide a safety device of this character adapted to be used in connection with the exhaust ports or conduit of an internal combustion engine, and with this object in view my invention comprises the structure herein described and set forth in the claims hereto appended.

In the accompanying drawings illustrating my invention, Fig. 1 is an elevation of an internal combustion engine adapted to supply power for any desired purpose, as in driving the traction wheels of a tractor, and with a safety device shown in assem bled relation with the engine exhaust conduit. Fig. 2 is an enlarged sectional view of the safety device, and Fig. 3 is a perspective view, partly in section, showing a slightly modified form.

In the drawings 5 indicates an internal combustion engine which may be mounted upon or be otherwise connected with the frame 6 of a tractor or like vehicle. The engine may be of any usual or desired type and is provided with the customary exhaust manifold 7 and the safety device or guard S is shown as being mounted upon the exit end of the exhaust conduit 14. It will be obvious however that the character or extent of the exhaust conduit is immaterial, provided that a safety screen be so arranged that the engine exhaust may pass there through before escaping to the atmosphere.

The safety device is shown as comprising the comparatively fine screen 9 which is preferably of woven wire of high thermal c0nductivity. In order to provide suflicient exit space without unduly increasing the resistance tothe flow of the gases this screen is so formed as to ofier a greater area than the cross-sectional area of the port or conduit, as for example by being expanded into cup shape or hemi-spherical contour as shown. Surrounding the exterior of the line mesh screen 9 and spaced therefrom is a shield 10 which may be stamped, cast or otherwise formed, preferably with relatively large apertures 11 in order to offer little resistance to the flow of gases therethrough. The guard 10 and screen 9 may be secured to the exhaust conduit in any desired man-- ner, as for example, by bolts 12 passing through apertures in a flange 11 formed on the periphery of the guard, and also through the edge of the screen 9 which may be flattened, as shown, for this purpose. The bolts may engage holes tapped in a collar or flange 13 formed upon or secured I to the conduit 14.

In place of a flange formed as a part of the guard a separate member, as a collar 16, may be employed to clamp the guard and screen to the conduit and a coarse wire guard, as 15, Fig. 3, may replace the form shown in Fig.

2. It will be understood that the forms I shown and the securing devices described are to a considerable extent merely illustrative, and that various changes in addition to those mentioned may be made in details of construction without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

It will be seen that the spacing of the guard device from the inner or fine meshed screen affords" a material advantage, inasmuch as theless rigid and more fragile screen is thereby not only protected from injury by engagement With obstructions of any kind, but the contact with the screen, which may become more highly heated than the outer guard, of substances which might be ignited by mere contact therewith is prevented.

I claim:

The combination with an internal combustion engine having an exhaust conduit discharging to the external atmosphere of a tire guard comprising a screen of fine mesh wire fabric adapted to prevent passage of flame therethrough arranged to cover the outlet of said conduit, and a shield having larger apertures than those of said screen mounted outside of and spaced from said screen.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature.

CHARLES F. S. BYRNE. 

